A Night With the Moonstars
by Blackstaff
Summary: Shadimir and Jepetto are in Waterdeep, meeting some of the Moonstars. However the hunter meets new friends, he will be thrown into the middle of an unraveling plot. The search for the Eyes of Selune begins...
1. Prologue

Uktar 12 1372, Year of Wild Magic

**Prologue**

The Selunite Sentinel named Edmind DiViro slowly walked through Waterdeep's dark streets in the late hour. His grey cloak covering most of his massive dragon-like body, except for the leathery wings that protruded from his back. His small yellow eyes watched the dark alleyways, while his clawed hands gripped the pommel of his great sword, in case any bandits decided to make him a target of their nightly muggings. Though he stood at six feet in height, a small force of thieves could still have a slight chance of overwhelming him.

Edmund walked past a small puddle of water, but then stopped. He slowly walked back and stared into the water. Selune's glowing moon floated in the night sky, providing the light for Edmund to see himself in the clear puddle.

The sentinel lifted the hood of his cloak, revealing his reptile-like face. Bronze colored scales replaced what would have been skin. He wore silver linked chain mail that was made to fit his large body. "I must remember to clean my armor later," he whispered as he stared at his reflection.

Pulling the hood back over his head, Edmund continued his journey to Blackstaff Tower, where there was a party for being held him and his fellow Moonstar agents. Lareal Silverhand had told the sentinel that there would be two new Moonstars visiting Waterdeep.

Just as he rounded the corner, Edmund heard a man crying for help.

Muttering a prayer to Selune, the sentinel fled to where he heard the man's screams. When he arrived, Edmund's eyes spotted the man lying on the ground, with several cuts on his face and arms. Three broad shouldered men, who stood over the man's body, dressed in leathers, looked at Edmund and drew their blades.

"Well what do we have here?" one of the men asked in a taunting voice, holding a dagger in his hand. "If you know what's good for you lizard man, you'll leave."

The sentinel glanced over at the dead body, He was a middle-aged human dressed in grey robes. Around the man's neck was his holy symbol. Edmund recognized the seven stars carved into the man's symbol.

"So you decided to attack a defenseless priest of Selune," Edmund growled, drawing his great sword.

"The priest had something we wanted," answered one of the other men," Do you have something against that?"

"Well, gentlemen, being a holy warrior of the Moonmaiden, I believe I do," the Selunite replied, holding his blade in front of him.

As soon as Edmund was done speaking, the one man who had kept silent the whole time, leaped at Edmund. The sentinel easily sidestepped the attack, and then swiped the tip of his sword across the man's neck.

The bald mugger, who first spoke, jumped at the creature who had just killed his friend. Edmund dropped his weapon and caught the man in mid air. With a smile, he threw the bald mugger hard at the wall to his left. The last mugger took one look at Edmund, then turned tail and ran for his dear life.

Edmund was just about to go chase the mugger who had gotten away, when a woman screamed," Guards! A monster has killed those three men." The sentinel looked back, seeing members of the city watch, armed with long swords and clubs. Edmund quickly jumped onto the wall of the building on his left, then began climbing to the roof.

"He's on the roof," one of the watchmen shouted. Edmund glanced at the watchmen, then heard the screams of the woman who had made the accusation that he murdered the three men. "It's only half true," Edmund muttered as he left from the rooftop he stood on. He then jumped onto the next roof before two of the watchmen started climbing.

He hoped to get to Blackstaff Tower, before Waterdeep's city watchmen got him first.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The undead hunter Shadimir Deachron sat in a large wooden chair, observing the guests at Blackstaff Tower. A small orange tabby cat landed on his head, scratching her paws through his silver hair. Shadimir let out a soft grunt and looked up as the tabby cat sat smiled down at him. Just as Shadimir was about to swat the feline off of his head, the cat jumped in the air, and landed on the floor.

Shadimir watched as the cat's body grew into the form of a beautiful red haired woman.

"Some interesting guests," Shadimir remarked as the woman walked away.

"Yes, but I don't think Stephanie would allow you to take that cat home with you," the svirfneblin Jepetto remarked as he walked over to his friend. In his right hand, the deep gnome held a small glass of wine.

The hunter nodded, thinking of his wife Stephanie, who was back in Silverymoon taking care of their twin children. "True, and besides, I've already got a cat."

"Yes, and he's sleeping," Jepetto commented with a smile as he pointed over to the snow tiger Elros, who was lying down in a corner. The snow tiger, who was Shadimir's faithful animal companion, had just finished eating half of a roast chicken.

"After eating a chicken, it takes a lot out of you," Shadimir said with a smirk. "I just wish we were all back home in Silverymoon. But we promised Stephanie that we would come and meet some of our fellow Moonstars." Jepetto nodded, then walked over to a nearby table and picked up a piece of pork. The hunter stared at his friend for a moment. Since arriving in Waterdeep three days ago, the deep gnome had kept to himself in the room they rented at the Blushing Mermaid. He told Shadimir that he needed to finish a project that he had been working on for along time. The hunter tried to see what his gnome friend was up to, but Jepetto took measures to prevent his friend from peeking on the unfinished project. Jepetto went ever as far as locking Shadimir out of the room.

Shadimir guessed that Jepetto was working on some sort of magical devise that could help them in their next battle, or possibly destroy the lands of the North.

The undead hunter continued to watch the room. His eyes saw a short, beautiful woman with pale skin and raven black hair. The woman turned to Shadimir, her violet eyes staring at him. She wore a long, sleeveless, red colored silk dress.

From his belt, Shadimir felt the vibration of his magical bastard Gabriel, telling him that this woman was undead. Either she's a vampire, he said to himself, or she's the most beautiful zombie I've ever seen. Then he noticed her fangs peek from her lips.

"Why hello there, you must be Shadimir Deachron, the famous vampire slayer," the woman said cheerfully, walking over to him.

Shadimir nodded, getting out of his seat. "Yeah I guess, and you are?"

"My name is Minerva Lastrona Kythorn," she answered with in a soprano voice, once again allowing her fangs to peek out. "Some of your exploits and adventures have reached my little ears."

The hunter smiled and crossed his arms. "You're not going to tell me that I killed a relative yours, are you?"

Minerva shook her head and laughed. "No, not at all. I write books and sing songs. Why I was just telling Mintiper Moonsilver that you and I should sit down together and talk about your adventures. Perhaps you could meet me in my home. It's just a small little house in the North Ward."

"That's generous of you, but I'll have to speak to my wife first," Shadimir answered with a smile.

"Why, your wife if welcome to join us," Minerva said as she took a sip from the glass of wine she held in her hands. The vampire shook her head and cringed as the taste of the wine hit her tongue. "I'm not really a fan of fancy Cormyrian wine, but I'd love to have you and your wife over for dinner sometime. My husband Ronald is a great cook."

"Oh darling, I'm not that great," said a tall, slender young man, as he walked up to Minerva. The man had red hair, blue eyes, and wore a white silk shirt with leather breeches. He gently kissed the vampire and smiled at Shadimir. "And you must be Shadimir Deachron. Minerva and I were talking about you earlier."

The vampire smiled at her husband. "Yes, love, I was just talking about having Shadimir and his wife over for dinner."

Ronald Kythorn raised and eyebrow and looked at his wife. "You didn't word it like that did you? Love, you know how that scares people."

Minerva blushed and turned away from both men, and said," I'm sorry love, I can't help it sometimes." She then looked at Ronald. "But where have you been darling?"

Ronald sighed. "I've been looking for Edmund, but he was nowhere to be found." He began looking around the lobby, trying to spot his friend.

"Maybe he's upstairs," Minerva said with a giggle as she grabbed Ronald's hand and pulled him towards the large staircase near the western wall.

Shadimir sighed and began walking outside. He had encountered many vampires in his life, but Shadimir had met very few like Minerva. He guessed that she had never hurt a mortal in her life, and if she did, it was only out of self-defense.

The hunter stared up at the moon, its light illuminating the City of Splendors.

"It went this way!" Shadimir heard someone yell from down the street. He saw members of the city watch running with haste, as if they chasing after something, or someone. The undead hunter grasped his weapons, then looked back, seeing Jepetto talking to a female svirfneblin named Harmonia about his secret creation.

"Let's hope I get back in time for more drinks," the hunter whispered as he ran down the streets to follow the city watchmen.

Five members of the city's watch had Edmund cornered in the alley. On both sides of the sentinel were large brick houses owned by noble families who had lived in Waterdeep for most of their lives. "Please," Edmund said in a calm voice," I don't want to hurt you."

All five watchmen stared coldly at the creature. One of the watchmen stepped forward and said in a deep voice," The woman said she saw you kill those men." Edmund sighed. It was the woman's word against his, and though he was a respected member of the church of Selune, Edmund knew his pleas would be ignored. To these men, he appeared as a freak of nature; a half man, half dragon creature with leathery wings.

Two of the watchmen drew their short swords and stepped in front of Edmund. They stabbed both of their weapons at his stomach, but the sentinel batted both short swords away with his claws. He then backhanded one of the two watchmen with his massive arm, sending him to the ground. The other watchmen slashed his blade at the sentinel, but Edmund grabbed the edge of the sword and began to spin in a circle, while the watchmen was still holding the sword's pommel. After two circles, Edmund released his grip on the short sword, and the watchmen flew in the air, landing in the next block.

The other three watchmen looked at each other, ready to attack, when a voice behind them said," I don't know how you Waterdeep watchmen fight, but in the Silver Marshes, I could call three against one unfair."

The watchmen turned, facing a tall, slender gentleman wearing leathers, and chain armor underneath. The man's silver hair seemed to shine in the moonlight. "This doesn't concern you citizen," one of the watchmen spat.

"That's fine and all," Shadimir remarked," but I'm just visiting." He drew his light mace and swung it hard across one of the watchmen's face. As soon as the first man fell, Shadimir swung his mace in a half circle, swatting another watchman in the forehead.

Edmund watched as the silver haired young man punched the last watchman hard in the stomach, then spun right and kicked him in the face. The hunter looked over at Edmund and smiled. "My daughter taught me that. Are you going to be all right?"

The Selunite Sentinel smiled and nodded at the hunter. "I'm a little tired of running, but all in all, I'm well. Where did you come from?"

"I came from Blackstaff Tower," Shadimir answered, staring at the creature before him. The dragon-like creature reminded him of the draconians he saw while he and Alustriel were in the world of Krynn.

"Fancy that, I was just on my way to Blackstaff Tower," Edmund said with a smile. "Perhaps I can join you."

"Sure," the silver haired hunter answered," but if you don't mind my asking, are you from the world of Krynn?"

Edmund sighed, shaking his head. "Well actually, it's quite a long story."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"It all began just after I turned eighteen summers," Edmund said in a low voice as he and Shadimir quietly walked down the street. "It was the Time of Troubles, when the gods walked the realms. I was walking along the streets, when I ran into the goddess Shar. She had only been in avatar form then, but she was still powerful. I would have been dead if Selune's avatar, who was named Luna at the time, hadn't intervened. Shar managed to escape, but not before putting a curse on me."

Shadimir nodded, then peeked around the corner. Once he saw there was no sign of the city guard, or other folk in Waterdeep, he looked at Edmund. "So what did you do?" the hunter asked.

"I feared for my life," Edmund continued. "After I was changed into the creature you see before you, I ran through the streets, ignoring those who yelled that they had just seen a monster."

The undead hunter shook his head. "You don't look like a monster to me." To Shadimir, a monster was a drow priestess who had the power to rip people's skeletons from their body, or a vampire who sent his legions of undead to capture children, so that he could sell them to other greedy vampires. To Shadimir, Edmund was just a man who wanted to live like anyone else.

Edmund smiled. "Selune said those very words to me. That night when I hid in the alleyway, she found me, and told me that though Shar cursed me, I would always be loved by her. I later joined the Moonstars at the request of Lady Arunsan. I wanted to say no, but once you've lived in Waterdeep as long as I have, you learn that it is not wise to deny the request of the Lady Mage."

"The same could be said for the Shining Lady of Silverymoon," Shadimir added ad he and Edmund reached Blackstaff Tower. "I met your friends Ronald and Minerva."

Edmund laughed. "Yes Minerva. She's been with Ronald since the day he saved her life. They made a blood-bond pact. A sacred ritual-,"

"A sacred ritual where a mortal and a vampire share each others blood and vow to love each other for eternity," Shadimir interrupted with a nod. "I know some of the ways of vampires and other undead."

"So I've heard," the sentinel remarked casually. "I've also heard you can be quite the animal."

"Coming from you, I'll take that as a compliment," Shadimir answered with a smile as they entered the front door.

Sitting in the lobby, Shadimir, Jepetto, the Kythorns, and a half drow wizard named Kyriani Agrivar listened as Edmund finished telling them about his encounter with the muggers, the dead priest, and the city watch. After he was done, Edmund went upstairs to clean up

"From the way it sounds," Kyriani said in her soft voice," the priest those muggers killed was a man named Quinten Silcrest. He was a priest visiting from Arabel."

"But why would people want to kill a priest from Cormyr?" Ronald asked, holding his hand with Minerva's. "It's not like-," Ronald's words were interrupted when Elros walked over to Shadimir. The vampire's eyes stared at the tiger's dark blue stripes, Jepetto's eyes noticed the tiger's round belly jiggle a little.

"Looks like someone had a good rest after dinner,. I think he might need some exercise," the svirfneblin remarked, adjusting the green lens goggles that were strapped on his forehead. Elros shot Jepetto a glare, then looked up at Shadimir and smiled.

"Elros, I wouldn't mind if you gain a hundred pounds," Shadimir said with a laugh as he stroked the snow tiger's ears. The tiger began looking all around the room, staring at the new faces. Shadimir sighed and looked at Ronald. "Sorry Ronald, please continue."

Ronald gave a nod. "Why would thieves want to kill a priest from Cormyr. Did he have a lot of money or something?"

"Maybe he had a magical artifact of some sorts," Minerva suggested, patting her husband's arm.

"The Eye of Selune," Kyriani whispered. She looked over at Shadimir, then at the wall.

"Eye of Selune?" asked the vampire. "Isn't that what you have back at your tavern?"

The half drow nodded. "Yes, but there are actually seven of the Eyes of Selune in existence. I heard that a priest from Cormyr was bringing one of the Eyes to Waterdeep."

"What do these Eyes do?" Jepetto asked curiously.

Kyriani looked at the deep gnome, then everyone else "Legend says that when all seven Eyes are joined together, they can open a portal to any plane of existence. However, the person must be chosen by the god whose plane they want to get to." The wizard sighed when she saw the blank stares on everyone's face.

Finally, Ronald asked," So, you have to be a chosen to use them?"

"No, no," Kyriani answered, shaking her head. "No, it means that if you wanted to open a portal to a god's home plane, then you have to be chosen by that god."

"So, if you wanted to open a gate to the House of the Triad, then you have to be chosen to open the portal by Tyr, Illmater, Torm, or any other god that lives on that plane," Shadimir said quietly.

Kyriani Agrivar smiled and nodded.

Minerva looked at Kyriani and shook her head. "Why it looks like whoever killed Quinten, must have taken the orb and wants to use it to open a gate to their god's home plane. This could mean lots of trouble."

"Right love," Ronald added. "We should look for these other Eyes before these people do."

The half-drow wizard smiled and walked to the door. "I'll go to my tavern and retrieve the Eye that I have there. Shadimir, I would like you to come with me."

Ronald looked at Minerva. "Let's go to the temple of Selune and tell them what's going on. We'll have Edmund go with us." Minerva kissed Ronald's lips softly. Together, they stood up and left to gather their weapons and armor.

Jepetto placed his goggles over his eyes and looked at Shadimir. "I have some last minute touches to work on, then I'll join you." The deep gnome looked at the floor, where the snow tiger was now sleeping. "I'll watch your cat for you."

Shadimir smiled and thanked Jepetto. When Kyriani left the room to gather her equipment, Jepetto looked at the undead hunter. "Something bothers me about this whole Eye of Selune business."

"What's that?" Shadimir asked, putting on his dark green cloak over his leathers.

"Well, if someone can use the Eyes of Selune to open a portal to a god's home plane, can they use it to bring something out from the other side?"

Several blocks away, Vincent, a broad shouldered man, with scars along his face and neck, watched over the tavern named Selune's Smile. He wore hide armor over his body, held a war hammer in his right hand. He wore a black eye patch over his left eye, and his dirty blond hair was thin and tangled.

"Vincent, are you sure you want to wait for the woman?" Arielya's sultry voice said from his left. Arieyla was a tall, gangly woman with light blue skin and slanted eyes and ears. Most of her blood came from the race of elves, but an ancestor of hers was a frost giant. She wore a long sea foam colored dress over her body and in her arms, she held a long blue colored trident. On her neck, she wore a necklace made of seashells and pearls.

"I'm sure I do Sea Witch," the Stormlord responded. He then muttered a prayer to his god Talos.

Arielya sighed and held her trident close. "I'm going back to the warehouse. Return when you have the Eye."

Vincent growled as the priestess of Umberlee vanished. He would return with the Eye of Selune, then if he felt like it, he would strike down the Sea Witch.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Shadimir and Kyriani arrived at Selune's Smile an hour after they left Blackstaff Tower. The half drow Moonstar Agent opened the large wooden door and stepped inside. "It's not much," she said with a smile. Kyriani then chanted a few words, and the six candles along the walls, lit up the room.

The undead hunter walked over to the bar, and pushed in one of the chairs while Kyriani went into the back to look for the Eye of Selune while Shadimir carefully examining the glass mugs lined along the top of the bar. Each mug had a small crescent painted in blue on the outside.

"Any luck finding the Eye?" Shadimir asked in a loud voice.

"No luck yet," came Kyriani's immediate answer from the back. The hunter sighed, then bent down to grab more mugs from the cupboard under the bar. He opened the small wooden doors, his eyes spotted the small dark blue orb behind the mugs. The orb had small stars that sparkled from beneath it's glassy exterior.

A song began to play in Shadimir's mind. The sound of harps, violins, and other beautiful instruments echoed through his mind.

Shadimir reached inside and grabbed the small orb. Then, he felt as if he was floating high in the air. He looked down, seeing a city of pure white. Its buildings were carved from beautiful stone. Its people were dressed in white, with feathery wings on their backs.

"Shadimir..." a voice called from the distance.

The hunter shook his head. He wanted to explore the city, and meet it's people.

The voice became louder. "Shadimir..."

The undead hunter shook his head again, but this time he was back in Selune's Smile, holding the orb on his hands. He looked behind him, seeing Kyriani Agrivar standing over him. "I see you found the Eye of Selune."

"I was floating in the air," Shadimir whispered, still holding the Eye. He looked down at the orb, then placed it in the magical bag on his belt.

Then a man entered the tavern, dressed in hide armor. He had scars on his face, and a patch over his left eye. "Sorry, we're closed," Kyriani said in a monotone voice.

Three more men, dressed in leather armor walked inside of the tavern, holding spears. "We've come for the Eye," the man with the eye patch declared in a gruff voice.

Shadimir stood up, drawing both his weapons. "What if we don't feel like giving it to you?" he asked with a smirk. His eyes noticed the thunderbolts carved in the man's war hammer.

Vincent smiled. "Then I guess we'll have to take it and burn this place to the ground."

Edmund, Ronald, and Minerva walked up to the temple steps, then stopped. Turning to Minerva, Edmund suggested that she stay outside. The vampire let out a snort of frustration, but Ronald volunteered to stay outside with her. As the sentinel went inside, Minerva's ears picked up the sound of rustling behind them. "You hear something darling?"

Edmund quietly walked inside of the temple. He took a few steps towards one of the altar rooms, when he saw Naneatha Suaril walking towards him. "Lady Suaril by what do I owe this honorable occasion."

"Brother Edmund, I know you have come to discuss the Eyes of Selune," the head priestess of the temple responded. She was dressed in expensive robes, with her hair tied up in a bun. "Selune came to me while I was meditating. She told me that the one who will bring the Eyes together, is among you."

Edmund thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "I believe I may know of whom you are speaking of. Should I speak to him about it?"

Naneatha shook her head. "I will speak to him in the morning. Now you must go outside, for I fear that your friends are being attacked."

The Selunite Sentinel nodded. "You stay here Lady Suaril." Edmund ran down the halls and through the doors. His eyes widened when he saw Minerva and Ronald trapped underneath a large net. Three sahuagin creatures held the net, their webbed fingers held on tight to the ends.

The Sea Witch walked past the sahuagins and held her trident forward and began chanting words.

Edmund watched as a water elemental appeared in front of Arielya. The elemental charged Edmund and swung its watery fist at the sentinel's stomach. Shaking off the pain from the elemental's punch, Edmund jumped in the air, drop kicking the elemental in its chest with both of his large feet. He then rolled behind elemental and wrapped his arms around it.

Lighting shot down from the sky, hitting both the elemental and Edmund.

Arieyla chanted another prayer to Umberlee, and pointed her trident at Edmund. Vines slowly rose from the ground and entangled his legs and feet. Edmund felt the water elemental shift into its liquid shape and free itself from his grasp. He roared as he struggled to free himself from the vines.

The Sea Witch walked up to Edmund, and slapped the side of her trident against his jaw. Edmund growled at the blue skinned elf woman, and slashed one of his claws at her face. Arielya stepped back, barely avoiding the monster's attack. She then drove the sharp points of her trident into Edmund's stomach.

The sentinel growled as all three sharp points ripped through his armor and skin. He looked around, seeing the sahuagins releasing the net, and surrounding him.

Arielya began chanting another spell, then looked back at the two still trapped within the net.

As they finally managed to lift the net off of their bodies, Ronald and Minerva watched as the priestess, the sahuagins, and Edmund vanish.

Blue lightning formed from the Stormlord's fingertips. Like a whip, it snapped through the air, and struck Shadimir in the chest. The undead hunter stepped back, shaking off the damage the lightning inflicted on him. He then swung both his mace and Gabriel at the Stormlord, but Vincent managed to deflect both weapons with his war hammer.

In the corner, Kyriani unleashed a spell that trapped the three men in a grey sticky web. One of the men tried to squirm his way out of the web. His legs kicked wildly, sending a broken chair at the wall.

Vincent grinned as he shot a thin trail of magical oil from his palm, and hit two of the candles on the wall at the end of the tavern. The flames from the candle grew and spread. Within seconds, the whole wall and part of the ceiling was on fire.

Seeing the Stormlord was distracted, Shadimir drove his mace hard into the cleric's gut. Vincent growled as he slapped his war hammer across the hunter's forearm. Just as the war hammer hit his arm, Shadimir stabbed Gabriel into Vincent's stomach. The Stormlord released one last bolt of lightning, this time hitting Shadimir in the midsection.

The undead hunter coughed from the smoke that was starting to fill up the tavern. He saw Vincent, holding his stomach, and slowly slumping to the floor. Shadimir decided to end the Stormlord's pain and stabbed him in the neck. Vincent prayed to Talos as he felt the hunter's blade enter his throat.

The fire continued to spread, and when Vincent's body fell to the floor, Shadimir heard the other men's cries for help. He quickly walked over to them, and cut the web with Gabriel's blade.

Seeing that their leader was dead, the men quickly ran out of the tavern, covering their mouths as they coughed. Shadimir looked over, seeing Kyriani grabbing the empty mugs and carefully throwing them in her brown leather bag. She then looked up at him, sweat trickling down her forehead. "You still have the Eye?" she asked.

Shadimir nodded, wiping his own sweat from his forehead. He coughed once more, then pulled her arm once she finished gathering the mugs.

They walked out of the tavern together. Shadimir looked back, wondering if the priest had made it to his god. He whispered a prayer for forgiveness, then looked at Kyriani. The half drow wore a look of anguish on her face. Shadimir turned to watch as the flames finished off the tavern. "At least we have one of the Eyes. Hopefully the others had an easier time at the temple."

Kyriani shook her head. "They didn't." Shadimir looked at her, confused. After taking a deep breath, she continued," I just got a message from Lareal, who is at Mirt's. Ronald and Minerva are back at the tavern. Edmund was taken by a priestess of Umberlee."


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Edmund slowly opened his yellow eyes. When he and his captors had left the temple of Selune, the priestess cast a sleep spell on him.

He scanned the room he occupied, finding nothing but a small wooden table a few feet away from him. Sitting at the table was the Sea Witch, wearing her beautiful dress. She brushed back her blue-green hair. "I was about to go back to the warehouse, when a little voice in my head told me to stop by the temple of Selune.

"Why are you keeping me?" Edmund demanded as he stood up.

Arielya smiled, her green eyes looking over Edmund's draconian physique. "I decided to change the base of operations. I was going to originally take you to a warehouse, but instead I decided to bring you to an abandoned prison in the Dock Ward. As for why I am keeping you, you seem to be pretty close to the Moonmaiden. No doubt she has chosen you to gather the Eyes of Selune. Perhaps we could make a deal where you help me find the other orbs."

The Selunite shook his head. "I would rather rot then hand you over the Eyes. Besides, there is another who Selune has chosen to find the Eyes, and I'm sure he won't comply with your offer."

Arielya shrugged. "No matter. I will let you rot in this place like the rat you are, while I acquire the other Eyes."

Edmund watched as Arielya rose from her chair and walked out of the room. He watched over to a small window in the corner of the room. Selune's glowing orb continued to brighten the dark sky. The sentinel smiled, believing there was still hope.

Shadimir was finishing a cup of tea when a stout dwarf named Castor Ironcil entered the lobby of Blackstaff Tower.

Castor wore studded leather armor with a dark green shirt underneath the chest piece. He had brown eyes and a thick black beard. However, the top of his oval shaped head was bald.

"Can I help you?" Shadimir asked, putting his dark green cloak over his back.

"Ye must be Shadimir," the dwarf answered, straightening his black gloves. "The name is Castor and I hail from Mithral Hall. Ye sculpt a good statue of Moradin. The clerics at the temple say its one of the best they've seen."

Shadimir nodded, making sure his armor was secure to his body. "Almost broke my arm trying to finish it. Are you looking for Lady Arunsan?"

Castor smiled and replied," Not really. I was late for the party, but I thought I could still grab a drink for four."

The hunter raised an eyebrow. "You're a Moonstar?" he asked.

The dwarf reached into his pocket and drew out the Moonstar pin. "For five months. But in all seriousness, I heard that our comrade Edmund was lizard napped."

"Along with the artifact he was carrying," Shadimir added. "We were just about to you look for him."

Leaning in close to Shadimir, Castor whispered," On my way here, I heard some folks sayin they saw some sea devils-also, probably known to ye as sahuagins, carrying a lizard man in the Dock Ward. I could go with ya to check it out."

Shadimir gave the dwarf a pat on the back. "Sounds good, there will be four more of us going."

"Actually five more," Jepetto announced as he entered the lobby of Blackstaff Tower with his goggles over his eyes, and a wand in his hand. Elros quickly walked behind him, staring at the dwarf.

"It's all right Elros," Shadimir said gently," Castor is a friend." The undead hunter's eyes then turned to the svirfneblin," and just who is this other person you speak of?"

Before Jepetto could answer, another dwarf walked into the room. For a moment, Shadimir thought that Mithral Hall had more Moonstar Agents, for he saw King Bruenor Battlehammer standing behind Jepetto. When he looked closer, Shadimir noticed that the dwarf's body was metal instead of flesh and bone. The dwarf carried a finely crafted war axe in one hand, a shield in the other, and wore a helm similar to that of the King of Mithral Hall. On the front of the shield, was a foaming mug, a symbol of Clan Battlehammer.

The deep gnome smiled with pride as the metal dwarf walked up to him. "I've been working on making this construct for a year. May I present, Battle-hammer."

"Battle-hammer?" Shadimir asked. "It's impressive, but I didn't know you could do magic."

Jepetto shrugged, brushing some dust off of Battle-hammer's helmet. "Just enough to create constructs. Watch this." The deep gnome looked at his construct with fierce eyes. "Battle-hammer, attack!"

The red eyes of Battle-hammer flared as he held the axe in his hand forward. "Let me at them, I'll split the orcs in two," a gruff voice growled from within the construct.

Shadimir smiled "Five more it is then."


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

One of the two guards who stood watch over the lizard man turned to peek inside the makeshift cell their prisoner was occupying. The guard's blue eyes widened as he noticed that there was no one inside of the cell.

"The bastard's gone," the guard cried as he looked back at his comrade.

Sitting at a wooden desk, the other guard, a surly middle-aged man with a brown goatee and a bald head, looked at the other guard. "Impossible," he spat in his deep voice. "Go inside and look. Maybe he turned invisible and is hiding in the corner."

Sure enough, the younger, more attractive guard opened the cell door, and stepped inside, his dagger pointed forward. "Where are you monster?"

The guard took two more steps towards the corner where be believed the prisoner was hiding. He didn't hear or see Edmund drop from the ceiling.

Standing behind the guard, Edmund wasted no time. He wrapped his large scaly arms around the young man's neck and snapped it. He then carefully placed the guard's body on the floor, making sure he made no sound.

"Oro, are you all right?" Edmund heard the surly guard call out. The sentinel said a quick prayer to his goddess as he stepped out of the prison cell and sprang at the guard.

The middle-aged guard tried to reach for his weapon, but Edmund drove his right fist into the guard's jaw. The guard let out a painful scream, but it was silenced when the sentinel raked his claws across the guard's neck.

The sentinel watched as the guard's lifeless body slumped over the desk, his eyes rolling in the back of his head.

"Thank you gentlemen," Edmund said in a cheerful tone," but I believe I can let myself out."

Hoping the Sea Witch or any of her guards wouldn't catch him, Edmund left the cell area.

"So how are things at Mithral Hall?" Shadimir asked Castor as he and his fellow Moonstars approached the abandoned prison. On their way here, a young barmaid told the Moonstars that she had seen a woman with blue skin putting a lizard man to sleep before entering the prison.

Castor, with both of his daggers drawn, sighed as he looked at the hunter. "Not too good as of late. King Bruenor's daughter ran away after she got a letter a few days ago. She didn't say where she was going. She only said that there was something she had to do."

The undead hunter nodded. His gut told him that Bruenor's adopted daughter Cattibrie, went looking for Drizzt DoUrden, a friend of Shadimir's, who also had gone on a search of his own to find Aliyah, Stephanie's sister.

"So do we just knock on the door?" Ronald asked as he and Minerva drew their rapiers.

Elros stayed close to his master, occasionally looking back to see Jepetto walking with Battle-hammer. The snow tiger looked up at Shadimir with concern. The hunter bent down and scratched the tiger's ears. "I know Elros, it's a little different. I always knew Jepetto had a knack for tinkering with...well anything, but I never knew that he could create something like that. Between you and me, I think Jepetto maybe one of the most brilliant minds in all of Fauern."

The snow tiger nodded his head in agreement.

Behind the other Moonstars, Jepetto studied Battle-hammer, making sure the construct was ready to a fight. "Give me an orc to smash," Battle-hammer's voice growled.

Minerva turned to look at the construct, then patted her husband's arm. Shadimir sighed as he walked in front of everyone. "I guess I'll go knock on the door, seeing as I have the Eye with me." The others kept silent, showing no objection.

Shadimir walked towards the door, but stopped as he felt the ground beneath him shake a little. Standing next to Minerva, Elros looked over at a small puddle of muddy water at the street corner. Small waves formed at the middle of the puddle, moving to the edge.

The prison doors burst open. Shadimir closed his eyes as a fierce wave of water came crashing down on him. He was thrown away from the door by the water, and fell on the street, the wind getting knocked out of him as he hit the ground.

A beautiful blue skinned elven woman stepped from the inside of the prison. "Find me the one with the Eye, and kill the others!" commanded Arielya.

Several sahuagins ran from behind the Sea Witch and charged the Moonstars. Their webbed toes and feet churned the inside of Jepetto's stomach. Holding a wand of magic missiles, the deep gnome pointed at the sea devils and shouted," Battle-hammer attack!"

Two of the sahuagins charged Jepetto and his construct. Battle-hammer's red eyes flared up as he swung his war axe, slicing off the head of one of the sea creatures. The second sahuagin slashed his claws at Battle-hammer, but Jepetto yelled the command word, and two magic missiles fired from the wand, hitting the sea devil.

Battle-hammer gave his axe another hard swing, this time cleaving the sea devil in two.

Castor stabbed both of his daggers forward, both of his blades landing in one sahuagin's throat. Another sahuagin came at Castor, hitting the dwarf in the stomach with his spear.

Just a little nick the dwarf thought as he stepped back to avoid the sea devil's next attack. Castor's ears began to hear the sweet sound of a man and a woman singing together. He felt strength flowing through his body.

The sahuagin made another jab with his spear, but Castor avoided the attack with little effort. The brown bearded dwarf then stepped left and slashed his daggers into the sea devil's jaw. Wasting no time, Castor made another hard stab in the sahuagin's throat.

Minerva and Ronald continued their duet about a dragon named Fyreflie as they fought a pair of sea devils. Minerva twirled in a circle as she slashed a sahuagin twice with her thin rapier. She then finished the sea devil by stabbing him deeply in the heart. Next to Minerva, Ronald stabbed the sahuagin in his throat.

Feeling new strength in his body, Elros charged the Sea Witch. Arielya laughed as she slapped the snow tiger with her trident. Elros flew in the air, crying in pain as impacted with the ground.

Still a little wet and sore, Shadimir's body jumped up as he heard Elros cry in pain. Arielya began to chant a spell, but Shadimir jumped and slashed her in the back with his bastard sword.

The Sea Witch turned to face the hunter. She made a thrust with her trident, but Shadimir blocked it with Gabriel. He then slapped his mace at the side of her head, cracking a small portion of her skull. Arielya cursed Shadimir, but screamed when she felt the snow tiger's teeth rip through her Achilles heel.

The Sea Witch kicked her leg back, hitting Elros in the face. Shadimir slashed Gabriel low, cutting off the lower part of her dress.

Arielya glared at Shadimir and spat," This isn't over." She then channeled the energy of her goddess.

The Sea Witch's body became pure water, then vanished before Shadimir's eyes. "I've heard that before," Shadimir muttered as he looked back, seeing Battle-hammer cutting down two more sahuagin. Surrounded by the corpses of sea devils, Ronald and Minerva continued to sing their duet while holding each other close Castor was examining the bodies of the sahuagin he killed, seeing if they had any gold.

"Well my boy, that was impressive," Edmund's voice rang from inside of the prison.

Shadimir smiled. "You missed the action. However, the priestess got away."

Edmund laughed, staring out at the dead bodies of sea creatures. "Then I suggest we all do the same. No doubt the city watchmen are on their way. We must go back to Blackstaff Tower. My stars, is that metal dwarf?"


	7. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

The next morning, Jepetto was cleaning up Battle-hammer while Elros rested near the fireplace in their room, at the Blushing Mermaid. Shadimir was sitting in a chair near the door, finishing off a cup of hot tea. "Didn't you use to own an inn in Waterdeep?" the deep gnome asked as he polished Battle-hammer's shield.

The hunter nodded, then sighed. "It was called the Lord's Sanctuary. Just after Jacen and Andreya were born, Stephanie and I brought them to the city. We ended up staying the night at the Sanctuary. Stephanie and Iris, who was running the inn at the time, became good friends. Then later that night, a Zhentarim tried to hold a girl hostage. She was a member of the Wands noble family. Iris managed to save the girl, but the Zhent ended up stabbing her before he ran away."

Jepetto sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry."

Shadimir shook his head and smiled. "Don't be. Stephanie and I did all we could to find the Zhent. When we found him, half the Grey Hand Enforcers had him cornered and caged. As for Iris, she died in the morning. Stephanie performed the funeral, and I gave ownership of the inn to an old friend."

Battle-hammer began to shake a little, then he looked at Jepetto. Elros opened his eyes, and stared at the construct. Shadimir also stared at Battle-hammer. "I've been meaning to ask, how did you get Battle-hammer to talk?"

The svirfneblin gave another proud smile. "I had a little help from some of the local mages in Silverymoon. When we arrived at Blackstaff Tower last night, Malchor Harpell helped me with a few last details. He's the one who provided the voices."

"I see," was all Shadimir said before putting his cup of tea on the small table next to his chair. He then jumped when he heard the sound of knocking at the door.

The undead hunter sat up from his chair and walked over to the door. When he opened it, he saw a beautiful woman wearing a dark blue silk dress. Before he had left Blackstaff Tower the night before, Edmund had told Shadimir that he might be getting a visitor in the morning.

"Can I help you miss?" he asked.

The woman smiled and bowed. "My name is Naneatha Suaril and I am the head priestess at the temple of Selune. I came here to bring you something." Naneatha pulled a small blue bag from her dress and handed it to Shadimir. The hunter reached in the bag and pulled out two familiar looking orbs.

"The Eyes of Selune?" Shadimir asked with a confused look on his face. "But I thought Kyriani was going to keep them and put them back in her tavern once it was rebuilt."

The priestess of Selune shook her head. "She was, but after hearing about the events of last night, I am starting to believe that Selune has chosen someone else to keep them."

"And you think Selune has chosen me?" Shadimir asked in a skeptical voice.

Naneatha smirked. "You saw the white city didn't you? The city filled with angels." The undead hunter bit his lip and said nothing. "I'll take that as a yes," Naneatha added in a gentle tone.

Shadimir gently took the two Eyes and stared at them. Unlike the time he found one of the Eyes back in Selune's Smile, the hunter didn't see a white city, or angels. "So there are five more of these out there?"

The priestess nodded. "Selune came to me in a vision this morning, and told me that you would find them in time. In fact, she said that they might just find you."

"Couldn't she told me herself?" the hunter asked in a voice that was a little ruder than he had intended.

Naneatha patted Shadimir's shoulder. "You will meet her soon. Now I must be off, but before I forget, the innkeeper told me to give this to you and your gnome friend." The cleric of the Moonmaiden handed Shadimir a small sealed letter, then left. The hunter opened the letter as he watched her walk away.

"Sounds interesting," Jepetto remarked, cleaning off his hands with a wash cloth. The gnome took the letter from Shadimir's hand and began reading it. Shadimir sat back in his chair, holding the two orbs. He wondered what the goddess Selune had in store for him and these orbs.

Shadimir's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the deep gnome's hysterical laughter. "What's so funny?" the silver haired hunter asked his friend.

Jepetto, who was holding on to the letter, looked at Shadimir. "I just got done reading this letter from Deidra, and well...lets just say that you Stephanie are going to be an aunt and uncle."

The hunter chuckled and raised an eyebrow. "You're joking right? Aliyah is going to be a mother?"

Jepetto nodded. "If you think that's funny, then guess who the father is."

Only one name came to Shadimir's mind. "Well I always said that I consider Drizzt like a member of the family. But are you sure he's the father?"

Jepetto held the note up for Shadimir to see. "It's was written by Deidra herself. Drizzt DoUrden is the father of Aliyah's baby-"

"Or I'm a bearded gnome!" interrupted Battle-hammer with his arms in the air.

_**For Joe, & Eddie**_


	8. Author's Note

Author's Note:

All right, first off, I want to apologize to anyone who is upset with what was revealed in the last few lines of the story. Truthfully, I've wanted to do the whole Drizzt & Aliyah romance for awhile, and now with a baby involved, there's no turning back. Also, for those who are confused about Sahuagins, they are creatures that look a little like fish men or something like that. And Sentinels...they're kind of like paladins, but they're more neutral good, than lawful good.

As far as Shadimir's patron deity...my original plan was to have him worship Kelemvor, but also worship Mystra. Yet as I wrote the character, he became less religious. He still worships Kelemvor, but he also pays homage to Selune, Melikki, and Sehananie Moonbow. One bit of information about Shadimir, was that his teacher Elros Oronar used to joke that he was kissed by Tymora. The truth about that, was during the Time of Troubles, Shadimir and his mother were in Arabel, visiting the goddess Tymora. Tymora kissed young Shadimir on the cheek after the visit was over. Later on that day, Shadimir bumped into a beautiful young woman...who would later turn to be his wife (yet neither of them knew it at the time)


End file.
